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Doctors at St. Louis Children’s Hospital say Owen Stark, a 2-year-old from Eldon, Mo.(1), is alive today because of an artificial lung(2). St. Louis Children’s Hospital is the first hospital in the country to use the device, called a Novalung®sLA, as an artificial lung. Owen is the youngest person in the world to receive one.

Originally approved to help adults through cardiac surgery(3) for intervals up to six hours, the Washington University physicians on the Children’s Hospital medical team requested permission from the FDA(4) to use the sLA for Owen to oxygenate(5) his blood in place of(6) his failing(7) lungs until donor(8) organs(9) became available. This temporary use is commonly(10) referred to as(11) a “bridge to(12) transplant(13).”

Surprisingly(14), Owen rehabilitated(15) so significantly(16) on the device, that when doctors removed it after 23 days -- expecting a need to replace it right away -- Owen’s lungs were strong enough to function on their own(17).

Owen was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary hypertension(18) -- or high blood pressure(19) in the lungs -- earlier this year. This condition can stress the heart(20), ultimately(21) leading to(22) heart failure(23). Owen was in full heart failure when he was transferred to St. Louis Children’s Hospital in June. In that critical state, the medical team determined he’d need a transplant to survive.

Owen didn’t have time to wait for donor organs. He was placed immediately on a heart-lung bypass(24) machine called ECMO(25) in order to buy time(26) for his heart and lungs to recover and be evaluated(27) for transplant.